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12 Years Later – Remembering 9/11 and the Missing Towers

It is hard to believe that it has been 12 years since I woke up from my college dorm, walked out to see everyone glued to the television and watched the 9/11 attack live on television. Months later, in an airplane landing in New Jersey’s Newark airport, I remember watching the plumes of smoke still rising and realized that this was something I would never forget. It is not because my safety was shattered, or because our national ego needed avenging, but because people, loved by God and their family, were angrily and forcefully destroyed. Many suffered physically and today many are mourning fathers, mothers and children who were made into weapons. For myself, I’m reminded that there will always be some form of conflict in the world and that some will try to enforce their own views by force. I’ll be praying for those who consider me their enemy today. We all have choices to make about how we live life. We can live in anger and seek revenge, or we can look to God and see a way towards peace. I’m praying that every person will get the opportunity to consider their actions, and choose not to destroy but rather, to build. A scripture that comes to mind comes from Luke’s gospel:

Luke 1:78-79 NIV

“because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

As the world expands and millions are added to our growing number of cities, war is becoming more catastrophic, more destructive, and displacing more each time it occurs. I’m praying for all those who are in war zones today. All the families, all the soldiers, and all the people who sent them there – may God give each person wisdom and the heart to make decisions that make the world a better place, rather than a smoldering, desolate black hole. Let us seek peace.